First Impressions (Ian)

Dumalang (hello in Tswana). Sorry for not writing before now.

I made it to Botswana safely and have settled into that now familiar stage of trying to orient myself in a new place and country. If first impressions are at all reliable, I think this is going to be a great place for Chase, Finn and me (and hopefully friends and family who are able to visit us). It’s impossible not to compare new places to places where you have been before, so here are a few general and admittedly still uninformed observations:

The people here are incredibly cheerful and nice. It is uncommon not to be greeted with a smile and friendly greeting. Think “Don’t worry, be happy.”

It is laid back. Things just seem less hectic and less urgent (work aside). We Americans could learn a thing or two.

Gaborone, the capital city where we are staying, has about 250,000 people. (The country’s population is about 1.6 million and is roughly the size of Texas.) The city is fairly spread out, with a defined city center but no concentration of shops and housing in any one area. You can take taxis to get around, but you really need a car. Most people with means have one, out of necessity. So I’ll be shopping for a nice second hand vehicle and will need to get used to driving on the left side of the road and learning the streets. (Yes, my lack of a sense of direction will not help.) But the plus side is that having a vehicle will give us the freedom and independence to go where we want when we want.

It is more developed than I expected. Gaborone is not Darfur. There are shopping malls, all kinds of restaurants, and the normal expat amenities that you would expect in the more comfortable overseas postings. Gyms, a cinema, two 4 star hotels, etc.

It is safe. More than most of the places I’ve traveled to, crime is apparently less of a concern. You have to use common sense, of course, but I feel no apprehension about walking around in the city, going for a jog, or hopping in a taxi and trusting that the driver will take me where I want to go. One driver explained to me that it was safe because they hang people who commit major crimes. Alright then. (This may serve as an accurate deterrent in Botswana, but not so much in the US where we have the death penalty in some states and still lots of crime. Go figure.)

Most of my first week was spent trying to get my head screwed on straight with work and figure out my housing options. One nice thing is that, unlike other places I’ve been to, I haven’t had to worry about the language. English is widely spoken, thanks to the British colonial influence, and it just makes things easier for those of us who don’t speak Tswana. I’ve seen lots of houses and have been pleasantly surprised by how far my housing allowance will go. Many of the houses that the agent has shown me are gated for security and have swimming pools. Some even have separate guest cottages. It is a far cry from the place Chase and I lived in during our stint in Kazakhstan on a volunteer stipend. Several of the expats I know live out in the bush, with more space than they know what to do with and the occasional unwelcome visit from various wild animals. But they seem to love it. (Don’t worry-we’ll be opting for something closer in town.)

In terms of nature and travel opportunities, we hit the jackpot. There are so many game reserves in Botswana and neighboring countries that I don’t even know where to start. None of them are cheap, but I think it will be worth selling an organ or two that maybe I don’t need in order to take advantage of the opportunities. Finn is going to love all the animals.

A bit of history: Botswana became independent in 1966 and has experienced political stability remarkable for any African country since then. It is landlocked, but has benefited from the discovery of diamonds in 1967. There are a few major mines operating now that have fueled development here and made Botswana a major player in the Southern African Development Community (SADC) whose function is to coordinate the disparate economies of the region. The Republic of South Africa is still the giant of the region and wields most of the influence, but Botswana holds it own. All is not roses though. The diamond mines have a limited lifespan and the country will have to find alternative revenue streams if it is to continue to prosper in the future. Botswana also has one of the highest HIV infection rates in the world. Consider this depressing statistic: life expectancy is 33 years of age and expected to decrease further.

A big source of pride here, and I gather all over Africa, is the World Cup coming to South Africa in 2010. Football is big. Botswana’s national team is known as the Zebras, and local leagues are also a big deal. The National Stadium is not too far from my temporary apartment.

People here are also following the US presidential election closely, wanting to know if Obama is going to win. No strong opinions about the others, but they all know Obama.

In terms of weather, you can’t get much better than Botswana during the winter (which is now). During the day, it gets maybe up to around 80 degrees. At night and in the morning, it is around 50-60 degrees. Summers are a different story and are very hot, but I can say that I have not experienced one cloudy day since I’ve been here.

My job will be very busy for awhile, mainly because I’m still trying to figure everything out. I had one week of overlap with someone else who was handling my responsibilities, but she left on Friday. Time to take the training wheels off. Rather than try to explain the project I’m working on, I’m direct you to the website in case your interested: www.satradehub.org. This will give you a flavor of what your tax dollars are going toward. My specific position is Operations Manager, which basically means having financial and administration oversight for the project. I’m also going to be doing some communications/report writing and monitoring and evaluation activities.